Telecom industry associations have had little to say on the record so far on the tariffs President Donald Trump unveiled Wednesday. A baseline tariff rate of 10% on all imports takes effect Saturday, while China and EU countries that manufacture products used in the telecom sector face higher reciprocal tariffs starting next week.

More than 100 state legislators from 28 states on Thursday urged Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and NTIA to ensure that states have the final say over their BEAD programs. In a letter backed by the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, the bipartisan group of lawmakers raised concerns about reported changes to the program that could cause delays to broadband deployment and states' authority over state programs. As of Thursday, 115 lawmakers had signed the letter and encouraged others to sign.

The departure of Elon Musk as a top adviser to the Donald Trump Administration could have significant implications for telecom policy, depending on when he leaves and how that changes his relationship with Trump, experts said. Among Musk’s companies is SpaceX, parent of Starlink, which stands to benefit from pending changes to the BEAD program (see 2503170045). Musk called reports of his imminent departure "fake news."

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr pushed back against a probe by Senate Homeland Security Investigations Subcommittee ranking member Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., of eight investigations of broadcasters that the Enforcement and Media bureaus launched since Carr took over Jan. 20 (see 2503140055). The FCC probes thus far focus on broadcasters that have carried content critical of President Donald Trump or otherwise face claims of pro-Democratic Party bias. Carr has, in some cases, said the scrutiny is focused on other matters (see 2502110063). House Commerce Committee Democrats are also investigating Carr's broadcaster actions (see 2503310046).

While FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has indicated that the agency envisions more steps to retire copper networks, beyond a series of orders issued in March, we're told it's unclear what big regulatory burdens remain. The agency last month called its steps "initial" and promised additional action (see 2503200056). Carr used similar language at last week's FCC meeting (see 2503270042). His office didn't comment further.

The Senate Commerce Committee said Wednesday night that it plans an April 9 confirmation hearing for Republican FCC nominee Olivia Trusty, as expected (see 2504010053). A panel vote on NTIA administrator nominee Arielle Roth will precede the hearing. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, UnidosUS and the United Church of Christ Media Justice Ministry responded to the announcement Thursday by calling on Senate Commerce leaders to delay Trusty’s consideration until they get assurances from the Trump administration that it won’t subsequently fire the FCC’s Democratic commissioners. FCC observers have questioned whether President Donald Trump might ax the commission's Democrats after his disputed firing last month of Democratic FTC Commissioners Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter (see 2503200057).

Communications Daily is tracking the lawsuits below involving appeals of FCC actions. New lawsuits are marked with a *.

Lawyers for the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition and the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society said Wednesday that groups defending the USF had a good day last week, as the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in the Consumers' Research case (see 2503260061). They spoke during a SHLB webinar.

The FCC should use a still-open 2017 proceeding to eliminate the national ownership cap, NAB said in a letter to the agency Wednesday. The rule bars any single TV broadcaster from owning stations that, as a group, reach more than 39% of the total number of U.S. TV households. “This outmoded rule prevents broadcasters -- but not any other video service providers -- from competing for audiences and vital advertising revenues across the county,” NAB said.

House Oversight Foreign Affairs Subcommittee Republicans tried to keep a Wednesday hearing focused on how to strengthen U.S. telecom networks’ security after the 2024 Chinese government-affiliated Salt Typhoon hacking incident (see 2411190073). But it quickly shifted to a series of partisan barbs over Trump administration officials’ leaked communications about plans for an airstrike in Yemen on messaging app Signal. Republicans have been attempting to pivot from the week-plus fallout over “Signalgate,” with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt telling reporters Monday that “this case has been closed … as far as we are concerned.”